Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and his universe all belong to J.K. Rowling. I only own it in my dreams.

It was a beautiful snowy day on the Hogwarts grounds.
Ginny had never liked the snow until now. They were throwing snowballs
at each other near the frozen lake, just the two of them together. He
had surprised her by staying at the castle for the Christmas holidays.
She threw a huge snowball at him and it whacked him in the back of the
head. She then watched as he fell onto the snow covered ground, panting.

"I'll
get you for that one," he exclaimed. "You just wait." She laughed and
fell on her back next to him into the snow. Her head turned towards
him, and she saw that he was smiling. It startled her for a moment.
Seeing a smile on his face seemed almost as if he was too exposed.

"And how will you get me back, pray tell?" she asked.

"Like
this," he replied simply, before kissing her softly on the lips. She
could feel the scratchy scarf she had knitted him for Christmas rub
just for a second against her neck. It had been careful, and short, and
it had meant the world to her. Their very first kiss. He stared at her
afterwards. The expression in his eyes was soft.

"How will we ever make this work?" she asked quietly, while cuddling into the crook of his arm.

"We'll find a way," he assured her, before kissing her again. Her worries were forgotten as the snow melted between them.

Ginny awoke with a start, breathing heavily.

"That's it, Ginny," she thought to herself. "Breathe. It's only a memory now."

Ginny shut her eyes, trying to forget. Her dreams about him wouldn't go away. They never went away.

Finding
that she couldn't sleep, Ginny wrapped a fluffy green robe around
herself and wandered out into the kitchen of her flat. She conjured
herself a glass of warm milk and sat down at the table, still trying to
escape from the ghosts of her past.

***

Harry found
himself running a hand through his hair in front of the mirror again, a
comforting habit for himself that he had developed after seeing his
father do it. It puzzled him that he was continuing this habit again;
he usually only ran his hand through his hair when he was nervous or
excitable. It was also troubling him that he had gotten up in the
middle of the night. He usually slept so soundly.

"Not a grey
hair in sight if it's any comfort to you, dear," said the mirror. "I do
so wish sometimes that you were looking at me instead of yourself.
Although you are quite a fascinating specimen."

Harry made a mental note to never replace the very complimentary mirror.

"Master
Potter!" gasped Dobby as he dashed through the open bathroom door.
"Chief Morrison wishes for you to come to the office right now, Sir! He
says it's urgent!"

"Thanks, Dobby," said Harry, rushing out of the bathroom and searching around for his cloak.

"Take
nothing, Master Potter!" Dobby squeaked, while trying not to get
stepped on by Harry as he hurried to and fro. "Chief Morrison says
Master Potter is to take nothing!"

"Mind the house for me, Dobby!" called Harry, and with a quick pop he had Disapparated out.

***

"Muggle
plane. Shot down only five minutes ago near Switzerland. We haven't
received a report yet on how many people were killed. Muggle
eyewitnesses say they saw bright streaks of red light shooting up into
the air and hitting the plane. They'll assume it was a new weapon that
has been concocted, but we know better," Chief Morrison looked
seriously at Harry and Ginny who were standing in his office once
again, "We're dealing with psychopaths here, that much is obvious, and
I don't like the situation."

"Are we sure it was D.F.?" enquired Ginny.

"We are almost certain," replied Chief Morrison.

"D.F.
is an unknown, Sir," remarked Harry. "It will be harder for us to find
him. We don't know his motives and we don't know what we're up against."

"That's
why I've got you partnered up with the best damn tracker I've seen in
all my years of working as an Auror, Potter," said Chief Morrison. "And
you don't need to know who D.F. is to know what his motives are."

"I
could think of a few," said Harry. "Power, revenge, causing pain. This
guy could just be insane, and then I don't think he'd need a motive."

"D.F.
isn't random," Ginny commented. "He's had plans, strategy. He has his
own cycle set up for himself for where he attacks and when. There have
been similarities between the attacks, subtle ones, but similarities
none the less. D.F. is never caught. He doesn't make mistakes."

"It
just doesn't seem right that someone would still be fighting for
something when even Voldemort couldn't win," said Harry, "and D.F.
sided with Voldemort so late in the game – just before he was killed."

"Maybe
he was biding his time until he knew that if Voldemort was going to
lose, then he could take over," said Ginny. "If that's the case, this
guy is too smart for his own good." This was how Ginny had made her way
through the ranks as an Auror: she knew her enemy well, nearly too well.

"Smart,
powerful, and insane," said Chief Morrison. "It doesn't sound as if
this guy is someone we want to be dealing with. You'll be leaving
tonight. I'll be giving you each a Polyjuice Potion to drink now and
then an extra supply of it to drink while on your mission. You won't be
Apparating to Switzerland. That can all be tracked. We need something
where no one will be able to trail you, that's why you'll be getting
the next Magi Tram out of here."

Ginny and Harry both nodded.
Chief Morrison opened a briefcase on his desk and handed them each a
vial of smelly liquid. Then he closed the briefcase and handed it to
Harry.

"Drink the potion in those vials before you go into the
tram station. Make sure to keep drinking potion on your way to
Switzerland, the extra supply of potion is in that briefcase," said
Chief Morrison, "You'll be Disapparating out of my office to the tram
station since I don't want you to sign out at the front desk." He
paused before saying, "I want to wish you both luck; this mission is
one of the utmost importance to us all."

Ginny chanced a look
at Harry. He had the most determined look in his eyes she had ever
seen, and it somehow made her feel more determined as well. If Harry
wasn't nervous, then neither was she. Ginny breathed deeply before
Disapparating to the Magi Tram station.

"Here," said Harry,
standing beside her. He handed her her vial, which must have fallen out
of the pocket of her robes. She almost thanked him. Almost.

"Well, drink up," Harry said, "and if you think you're going to be sick, the toilets are over there."

Ginny
held her nose while bringing the vial up to her mouth and drinking the
whole thing. She grimaced at the foul taste before running into the loo
to throw up. After the sickness had worn off she walked up to a mirror
and studied her reflection. Deciding that her new blonde hair and grey
eyes were not terribly bad looking on her now long, narrow face, she
walked outside in search of Harry.

"Is that you, Ginny?" asked
a deep voice from behind her. Ginny turned around to see a young, tall
man with short brown hair and dark blue eyes. He startled her until she
realised that it was Harry.

"The potion must have worked then," she muttered.

"Yes, can't say you look much like yourself," said Harry.

"Well, at least the Chief found us people to transform into that have the same clothing size as us," remarked Ginny thankfully.

"Yes,
good thing," said Harry, he was looking quite a bit more nervous now
than he had in the Chief's office. Ginny noticed that he tried to run
his hand through his hair before realising it was too short to do so.

"Something the matter?" asked Ginny.

"No, nothing," Harry replied, although Ginny could tell he was lying.

"I don't see how you managed not to throw up. That potion was terrible, and I didn't even see you cringe," Ginny remarked.

"Polyjuice Potion is as common to Moles as Pumpkin Juice," said Harry. "Although you're right, it is quite nasty."

"The next Magi Tram should be here soon," Ginny said, glancing around the station. "Looks like we're the only ones here."

"It's a good thing nobody's here. It makes less work for us, no memories to wipe," said Harry.

"Hopefully we'll have as much good luck with the rest of our mission," said Ginny.

"Yes,
hopefully," replied Harry, although he was overcome with a strange
sense of foreboding, and he sensed that this mission was not going to
be at all like any of his previous ones. If his new partner was any
sign of what was to come, Harry suspected that his luck had run out.

***

Ginny
couldn't suppress a grin as the Magi Tram traveled along the tracks
through the underground. She held on to the handle that was hanging
from the ceiling as it sharply turned a corner, only leaning slightly
as it did so. Harry, though, was having a bit more trouble, much to
Ginny's amusement.

"How," Harry spluttered, stumbling once again and almost letting go of his handle, "do you bloody stand up on this thing?"

"You've
never been on a Magi Tram before, have you?" Ginny asked. Harry shot an
angry glance at her before falling, once again, to the ground.

"I think I'm going to be sick," he moaned.

Magi
Trams, having been the very latest invention in wizarding travel, were
something Ginny had become quite accustomed to. She had been riding on
them for years now for the trips she had to make for the Ministry. Magi
Trams were the preferred mode of travel by most now, being more
reliable and faster than brooms. It was also harder to trace people
when they were riding one than if they were using Floo powder or
Apparating. Though, as Harry had found out, the speed of the trams did
have some disadvantages for riders who were not used to it.

"Try leaning with the tram," Ginny supplied helpfully.

"I'm trying!" Harry yelled at her irritably, before flying slightly forward as the tram came to an abrupt stop.

"Stop number 364!" a goblin from the front of the tram announced. "Paris, France!"

Harry groaned as he made his way back to where Ginny was standing and took hold of a handle tightly. "We're not there yet?"

"Hardly,"
Ginny replied, and then watched him trip as the tram started to move
again. She took this opportunity to let go of her handle and straighten
out her skirt as Harry got up and glared at her.

"Show off," he muttered. She smirked at him before taking hold of the handle just as the tram went into another turn.

"How come there are no seats on this thing?" Harry demanded.

"Well,
they are planning on making a newer version of the Magi Tram with
seats," said Ginny. "The Ministry has the idea in the back files, but
it won't actually be made for another year or so. They say that matters
of wizarding security are more important than a few bloody noses on
these trams."

Harry made a noise of irritation before being
flung to the front of the tram once again because of stop number 365
somewhere in Sweden.

"I've always wanted to try being a
blonde, you know," Ginny remarked, absently fingering her hair, "When I
was little, I wanted to wear the frilly pink robes they sold in Madam
Malkin's shop, but I couldn't because pink clashed with my hair. Then
at school there was a girl named Emma Dobbs who had the most beautiful
golden hair. I envied her."

"You could always just die your hair with some of that junk Lockhart Inc. produces," suggested Harry.

"I'm
afraid it would make my hair look like cheese," replied Ginny. Harry
let out a laugh at this and then just barely managed to remain standing
as the tram took a sharp turn.

"You're getting better at this," said Ginny.

"I
used a sticking charm on my feet," replied Harry sheepishly. "Last time
I fell onto an old troll's lap, and she didn't like that very much."

"I
think you squished her groceries," commented Ginny. "You have a stain
on your butt that kind of looks like you sat on eggs and scones."

"Well, thank you so much for telling me that," mumbled Harry, rolling his eyes.

***

"My
legs feel like they're about to fall off," Harry complained as he and
Ginny walked along the side of the road, "Can't we just Disapparate to
the meeting point?"

"Chief Morrison thinks we might be
tracked," said Ginny. "How much longer do you think we have before we
need to take more Poly- "

Ginny was cut short by the sharp,
metallic ring of something in her pocket. Harry gave her a questioning
look as she pulled out what looked to be a compact.

"Makeup?" asked Harry, puzzled.

"No,
Witch's Glass," replied Ginny, opening it up and looking into where the
mirror should have been. Instead, Harry saw that there was the image of
a man with a baseball cap on his head.

"Chappy," sighed Ginny exasperatedly, "I'm on a priority mission, now what do you want?"

"I want you to check over the coordinates you gave me," said Chappy. "I'm telling you, they're way off."

"Hardly,"
she snorted. "Just a baby tracker named Chappy Bains. I assigned him to
trace something for me. Easy stuff but, of course, he can't seem to get
it. I have him searching for someone named Peter Dunwich, very low
priority subject. Chappy's been annoying the hell out of me ever since
he came to the department."

"I know how that can be," said Harry.

"I
think that's where we'll be meeting our contact," said Ginny, pointing
up the road to a large estate with the flag of Switzerland waving atop
its flagpole.

"La Tromperie?" asked Harry dubiously, reading the name of the hotel from a sign at the front.

"That's the place," said Ginny with an assured nod. "Come on, it's only a little further."

They
walked a ways further before going through the doors of the hotel and
entering a small reception area where a woman in a grey skirt and
blazer approached them. She gave them both a welcoming smile.

"Bonjour," she exclaimed. "Est-ce que tu parle Francais ou Anglais?"

Harry shrugged, utterly bewildered, but Ginny seemed to comprehend slightly what the woman had said.

"English. We are from Britain," she said. The woman nodded.

"Ah, hello and welcome then to you both," she said with a thick French accent. "Will you be wanting a room?"

"We
are waiting for an old friend here who we knew from our school days,"
replied Ginny. "We were set to meet him in the dining room, I believe?"

"Of
course, follow me please," said the woman. She led them down a flight
of stairs and into a heavily furnished dining room where the smell of
cooked pork lingered in the air. Harry's mouth watered and he
remembered that he had not had any breakfast.

"There is a man
over there," said the woman, pointing to an occupied table where a man
in a tweed jacket was seated reading the newspaper. "He is our only
guest who gets up this early."

"Is he our contact?" Ginny
whispered to Harry, who shrugged, then said to the woman. "That is our
friend. Thank you for your assistance." The woman nodded and left them.

"Well,
well," muttered the man, setting down his newspaper on the table. "It
looks as if you two are five minutes late. Highly unprofessional, and
your Polyjuice Potion must have worn off because I must say I recognise
the both of you."

"I'm sorry, sir- " Ginny began but then let out a gasp of surprise, "Remus!"

"Remus," said Harry, startled, "I thought you were in Peru, and your hair- "

"Yes, silver, I know," sighed Remus. "That's what happens when you get to be as old as I am."

"Oh, Remus," said Ginny. "You're not old, the silver makes you look sophisticated."

Harry, though, was intrigued. "You're saying D.F. is a ploy?" he asked Remus.

"Yes,
and a good one, at that," Remus replied. "You see, there was no D.F.;
it's all an elegantly designed scheme to get the Aurors' away from
where they're really needed."

"And where, exactly, is that?" asked Ginny.

"Back
in the office, to make sure Minister Nerse is re-elected," said Remus.
"It's blindingly obvious that someone is going to extreme lengths to
tip Chief Morrison off and give him false leads so that his department
will look like a joke. And, in turn, Minister Nerse will look like a
joke for funding it."

"No, I've been studying D.F.'s file,"
said Ginny sharply. "This is no figment of the imagination. This is not
a sham. This is a real person we're dealing with who has the capability
to overthrow what Minister Nerse has worked so long to rebuild."

"Think
rationally about this, Ginny," said Harry. "What Death Eaters are left
out there that would be willing to fight for something that's been gone
for so long? True, there are some small skirmishes between Muggles and
those who were followers of Voldemort, but nothing organized to
overthrow our ministry. It seems to make sense that this would be
political."

"There was no plane shot down, Ginny," said Remus.
"You've been sent on a wild goose chase. All the Muggle killings you've
been hearing about, they've never been confirmed."

"That's
because D.F. covers up his tracks," said Ginny exasperatedly. "Do you
really believe it's logical that Voldemort is the last evil our world
will ever face? Look back through history! We always thought that we'd
seen the worst until something greater came our way. Are you really
arrogant enough to believe that you have seen the last great evil of
this planet die?"

"I'll
bring you there tomorrow, right now you two should go get some rest,"
said Remus. "I really don't think we're going to find anything when we
follow the directions I've been given, but if Ginny thinks she's right
then it couldn't hurt."

Ginny was up out of her chair before
he could say any more. She stormed up to the lobby again to get herself
a room while Harry stayed behind with Remus, who was looking at him
warily.

"Then
she hasn't changed much at all. I'm telling you, though, Harry. A
retrieval team was sent in to check the area and search the plane for
evidence. There was no plane. Planes and passengers don't just
disappear in a matter of minutes, even with magic, and I see no reason
why anyone would take the whole thing with them after shooting it down.
The plane would have been in shambles already," said Remus.

"We'll
investigate into it just to satisfy Ginny's suspicions," sighed Harry.
"Tell Chief Morrison that with any luck we'll be back by tomorrow."

Remus
smiled. "Dora sends her love, by the way," he informed Harry. "She's in
Japan, at the moment with the pup. Lowell misses you; you're his
favourite playmate. Anyway, goodbye and good luck, Harry, I must be
off. Chief Morrison is waiting for my report." He then quickly slipped
into a nearby broom cupboard and Harry heard the sharp crack as he
Disapparated. Harry climbed wearily up the stairs to the lobby again,
but before he got there he found Ginny on the stairs. He supposed she
had been waiting for him.

"We have to find someplace to take
our Polyjuice Potion again," she stated, "and we'll need to do a mind
wipe on that secretary at the front desk."

Harry nodded. "I think I saw the bathrooms downstairs near the dining room."

He
noticed that Ginny looked tired as she accepted the vial of Polyjuice
Potion from him. She almost looked older than she really was, also. He
wondered if what Remus had said had struck a nerve with her. It was
something in her eyes that reminded him of the night at his flat when
she had left so abruptly.

"Are you all right?" he asked, unsure of how she would react. Thankfully, she didn't just assume he was trying to pry.

"I'm
tired, that's all," she replied, "and I was just thinking about when I
last had an assignment. I'd almost forgotten how real it felt out here."

Harry
didn't know what she meant, but he didn't ask any further. He felt it
must be something personal, and he really couldn't understand what she
was going through. These assignments… well, they were just a job to
Harry. Emotions and feelings didn't come along with his assignments.
He'd grown too detached from them over the past few years. He kept up
with them more for the sake of doing something, and also because they
were one of the few things keeping him sane.

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